Mario Barrios’ second consecutive trip to Las Vegas will include three of the four officials from his previous outing.
BoxingScene has confirmed that veteran referee Thomas Taylor was appointed to maintain order in the ring for Barrios’ WBC welterweight title defense versus Ryan Garcia. Joining California’s Taylor on the officiating panel are judges Tim Cheatham, David Sutherland and Steve Weisfeld.
Barrios-Garcia will headline a DAZN pay-per-view event Saturday from T-Mobile Arena in Vegas.
Taylor will earn $4,150 for his in-ring role. The three judges will earn $2,950 each, regardless of whether the bout goes to the scorecards.
Taylor has become a frequent flyer for big events in the sport’s unofficial fight capital. Among his notable appearances, Taylor was the referee for Barrios’ 12-round draw with Hall of Fame former eight-division titlist Manny Pacquiao last July 19 at nearby MGM Grand Garden Arena.
Judges Cheatham and Weisfeld also worked that contest. Each turned in identical scorecards of 114-114 to produce the majority draw. The dissenting judge was Max DeLuca (115-113 Barrios), who will work the Richardson Hitchins-Oscar Duarte co-feature on Saturday.
Barrios, 29-2-2 (18 KOs), will fight for the sixth time with Taylor assigned as one of the officials, all but two of which have come as referee. He was also the third man in the ring for Barrios’ September 2023 win over Yordenis Ugas at T-Mobile Arena, along with his June 2021 knockout defeat to Gervonta Davis in Atlanta.
Saturday will mark the third time that Taylor will officiate a bout involving Garcia, 24-2 (20 KOs). His previous role came in Garcia’s first defeat, when he was knocked out by Baltimore’s Davis in the seventh round of their April 2023 blockbuster event at T-Mobile Arena. The superfight also included judges Cheatham and Weisfeld, who correctly had Garcia trailing at the time of the stoppage.
Like Taylor, Saturday will mark the third assigned Garcia bout for both Cheatham and Weisfeld. San Antonio’s Barrios gets judge Cheatham for a fifth time and Weisfeld for a fourth time.
Judge Sutherland will work his third bout involving Barrios and first to include Garcia.
Saturday’s scheduled 12-round contest will see Barrios attempt the third defense of his WBC title, following two defenses of the interim version. Each of his past two starts have ended in draws; eight months prior to his showdown with Pacquiao, Barrios fought to a 12-round stablemate with Abel Ramos in Arlington, Texas.
Garcia will challenge for his first major title, and on his second attempt. He was due to contend for Devin Haney’s WBC 140lbs strap, but he badly blew weight and was ineligible to win the belt. Garcia defeated Haney via majority decision, but their April 2024 clash was converted to a no-contest after Garcia, a native of Victorville, California, tested positive for ostarine.
His lone fight since then was a stunning and lopsided points loss to Rolando “Rolly” Romero for the secondary version of the WBA 147lbs title last May 2 in New York City. Garcia’s loss to Davis was a non-title fight, as it took place at a 136lbs catchweight.
The officials were also confirmed for the other two title fights on Saturday’s show:
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Harvey Dock (New York) was named as referee for the Hitchins-Duarte IBF 140lbs title fight, for which he will earn $3,100. The three judges will be Eric Cheek, Max DeLuca and Patricia Morse-Jarman, each of whom will make $2,300.
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The Gary Antuanne Russell-Andy Hiraoka WBA 140lbs title fight will see New Jersey’s Allen Huggins serve as referee, for which he will collect a $2,700 payday. Weisfeld will pull double duty as one of the judges, along with Glenn Feldman and Jack Reiss; all three will each earn $2,000 for the assignment.
